A typical deep-fat fryer will include a fryer vat containing a heating bath of cooking oil. The cooking oil is adapted to receive baskets of food products such that the food products will be immersed within and cooked by the heated cooking oil. Such fryers may also include a heat exchanger and a pump. The pump is responsible for continuously pumping the cooking oil from the fryer vat, through the heat exchanger and back into the fryer vat such that the cooking oil remains at a substantially constant temperature, thereby allowing the food products to be evenly and consistently cooked within the fryer vat. Fryers have also been manufactured with in vat fire tubes and associated burners, with combusted gases being passed therethrough to heat the oil, eliminating the need to constantly pump the oil from the vat through a heat exchanger.
To extend the useful life of the cooking oil, it is a common practice to filter the particulate food matter from the cooking oil to minimize the carbonization of such food matter within the cooking oil. Improvements in effectiveness and convenience of filtration systems are regularly sought.